Component constraints and late ordering are complicating AI infrastructure schedules, prompting Dell Technologies to ask enterprise buyers to plan deployments earlier to limit delays and cost increases.
At the Oct. 20 Dell Technologies New York Symposium, David Schmoock, the company’s senior vice president of global revenue operations, said projects may need 60, 90 or 120 additional days when Dell is brought into planning late. He made the remarks in an interview with SiliconANGLE. Schmoock said late coordination can raise project costs and disrupt operations. He said technology-dependent firms, including high-frequency trading companies, moved early to reserve delivery dates.
Dell’s fiscal Q2 2027 results show the scale of AI demand amid those supply constraints. For the quarter ended July 31, 2026, Dell recognized $16.4 billion in AI server revenue and booked $60.9 billion in AI orders. Its AI backlog stood at $95 billion at quarter-end. The orders, recognized revenue and backlog capture different stages of the business. Dell’s SEC filing said revenue from AI-optimized servers doubled from a year earlier, with unit sales accounting for most of the increase and higher average selling prices contributing less.
Dell Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke told investors Sept. 1 that constraints involved DRAM, NAND, CPUs, disk drives and optical components. Clarke also said the broader AI supply chain was working to build cooling distribution units and power racks.
Dell has said large customers share future demand through collaborative planning, giving both sides more time to coordinate hardware availability and delivery. Buyers who plan earlier may secure delivery schedules, while late coordination can leave companies facing the added costs and operational disruption Schmoock described.
